AJ Frazier, over there on the right, is your average teenager: smart, funny, filled with potential and of course, a terrible underachiever. I can relate.

He did a report for Radio Rookies in New York City about what it meant for him when the New York City Department of Education raised the standards for passing the 8th grade and ended social promotion. That's the practice of letting failing students head on up to the next grade so they can stay with the people they relate to socially.

Coverage of youth in the media rarely represents what young people are truly facing, thinking and saying. By helping young people reach WNYC's audience of more than one million weekly listeners, WNYC's Radio Rookies has become an integral part of the station.

- Radio Rookies on who they are and what they do.

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Music in this episode is by a cool guy named Treacle from Chicago. Check out his tracks on Vocalo.org, which is also where I spend much of my broadcast time.